Dysfunctional Families
by Miims
Summary: In his own way, Yuan really tries to help. In which Yuan tries and Tokito gets a serving of tough-love. T for langauge.


_Italicized are thoughts though in one case it is emphasis._

All families are dysfunctional in their own way… **everybody** knew that. Right? But as he looked (felt rather than actually saw) down on the young woman who crouched in the wreckage of their former home he knew otherwise, and he was sorely tempted to kick her in the head.

Taishirou didn't cry, especially not ones that his family had adopted… not that they needed another mouth to feed… _damn_.

He paused, using his minds eye to watch her.

"Hey brat, get up."

_No reaction._

"Did you hear me?"

_Still nothing._

"Do you think your pops wants you to act like a pouty, whiney, brat?"

He saw her tense, _That got a reaction_, he thought as he smirked.

He lifted one foot and stuck it none too gently on her head, then shoved her delicately to the side. (And yes, if anybody does ask, you can "shove delicately", you just has to be as highly skilled as he is.) Then he plopped down next to her, bent his legs and rested his arms on his knees.

_Whiney teenagers always need to bitch to somebody, all you have to do is listen and… it helps. _

He should know after all, he went through it with Anna and Angelica, and don't even get him started on Anthony or Keikoku, or Hotaru, or whatever name his idiot student went by.

"Yuan you son of a-"

She was cut off by his hand, which had snaked around and clamped her lips together, "I know you weren't about to insult my mama," he said, predatory grin in place.

She whacked his hands away and rolled her eyes, but did not pick up where the thought were leading too.

He waited a few more minutes, and when she did not budge he put his elbows behind him, stretched out his legs and raised his head to feel the breeze, never mind the dust kicked up by the fallen tower that flew into his face.

_Ok kid, you want to see who can out wait who? I am the King of patience… The King! What do you think I learned when I practically raised my family?_

Fortunately for him, he did not have to wait long. _Tokito never could hold anything in for long. She just used to have outlets for her impatience before._

"You're lucky you know."

Yuan pretended to inspect his nail, with his callous grin plastered on his face, "Why's that?"

"Cause you family loves you."

She had stopped her silent inspection of the ground and instead turned her gaze to the fallen red tower.

"Yup."

"Because your parents cared about you."

"So did yours."

"Their dead, my mother died and I can hardly remember her, and my uncle left, and my father closed himself off from the world."

Yuan paused, raked a hand though his white hair (not that he even knew what white was) and grinned once more.

"My mama died too. She was killed by your dear 'uncle Hishigi' and my older brother left with your uncle Muramasa, and my father was so bent on revenge that he forgot about his family."

She paused and looked at him for the first time and frowned slightly, "I grew up as a boy."

He almost laughed, managed to subdue it and grin in its place, "So did I."

He could practically feel her seething, "But I'm a girl, forced to be a boy... You were already a guy…"

She paused and he could feel a little bit of Taishirou Tokito return, "Unless you have something to tell us."

He really did laugh then, "Kid don't ever lose that spirit."

They paused then, both taking in the surroundings in their own ways. She looked at the destruction wrought by what could only be called a god, saw the red down split asunder by that same power. But most importantly, if she closed her eyes she could feel the loss of what-ever-messed-up-home she did have. It had fallen apart with the city, no it had fallen when the Former Aka no Ou struck down her father. Yuan did not use his eyes, he never had, but he could hear the wind wail through the the wreckage and smell the dust, and rubble and even the bodies of those who were not so lucky to escape. In this way he knew what happened better than any normal person could ever hope too.

"I don't have anything now. I'm all alone."

There was no answer to statement for a long while, which frightened her, she was waiting for his snide remark.

She peeked at him out of the corner of his eye, and paused when he pulled off his ruined blindfold.

"I'm blind, and unlike your little friend" she seethed when he implied that she and Akira were friends, "I was born this way. No choice in the matter," he made a big X with his arms, "Whatsoever."

He paused, "And when my mama died and my pop's and my big brother left, who raised my family? They don't live with my old man for a reason. And when people started trying to hurt my family because of my mom's 'betrayal', while you slept safe and sound at night, what did I do? I became a Taishirou, a position I hated all for them."

He stopped speaking for a moment, "And we are still dirt poor…" breath, "But then I guess everybody is now."

He laughed at his own joke while Tokito mulled at his side.

"Why did you tell me that? I never took you as the type to bitch about your problems."

He grinned, "I didn't take you for the bitchin' type either Tokito," he blushed an angry crimson, "Point is everybody has it tough, and everybody's families are dysfunctional in someway"

He looked her way, and she found herself unnerved… maybe for no reason, "Point is," he continued, "are you going to let that make who you are, are you going to continue having 'my life is worse that your is competitions with everybody you meet'? Or are you going rise above this crappy situation?"

She looked at him.

"He was still a sucky father."

Yuan laughed, "I won't argue with you there."

"Your family is lucky."

"Don't I know it… but so are you because your apart of it too now."

She stopped, looked at him slowly, and pretended that that _was not_ exactly what she needed to hear.

Then she stood up, "Maybe when I get back…,"She peered at him again as if making sure he was telling the truth, "I have something I need to do first."

"And what's that."

"A rematch."

She grinned viciously.

He raised his hands in farewell and grinned, "Good luck."

She stopped, frowned, because she knew what she had to do, but found it distasteful as well, "Thanks," then she smiled sweetly, "… And I will take you up on your offer Oni-san."

Yuan's face fell, _brat._

AN:

Yuan really is my favorite characters in SDK. Also he really is a great brother, with his no-nonsense, tough-love attitude, which in my fic Tokito really needed.

I was originally attracted to SDK because of the over all conflict between Kyo and Kyoshirou, and the YuyaXKyo element. However, I eventually got tired of the predictability of that aspect of the story and really fell in love with some of the more minor characters in the manga, like Yuan, Shihoudou, Julian and Tokito (I like Hotaru and Akira too, but I don't think they can be called minor characters). It's the little things. And don't get me wrong I still like a little Kyoya, I just like other things too.

In this case Yuan helps Tokito out of her little slump, because it's the type of person he is.


End file.
